Rock of Ages Light
The Rock of Ages Light is a
History
Overview
The period between 1852 and the beginning of the 20th century saw great activity on the
As the new century began, on the Great Lakes the Lighthouse Board operated 334 major lights, 67
During the 19th century design of Great Lakes lights slowly evolved. Until 1870 the most common design was to build a keeper's dwelling with the light on the dwelling's roof or on a relatively small square tower attached to the house. In the 1870s, so as to raise lights to a higher
The Rock of Ages Light was part of a forty year effort—between 1870 and 1910—where engineers began to build lights on isolated
Successively, using underwater crib designs, the Board built on a shoal the
In the first three decades of the twentieth century the Lighthouse Board and the new Lighthouse Service continued to build new lights on the Great Lakes. For 1925, the Board had under its auspices around the Great Lakes: 433 major lights; ten lightships; 129 fog signals; and about 1,000 buoys. Of these 1,771 navigational aids, 160 stations had resident keepers, as most navigational aids were automated.[12][13] By 1925 nearly all of the Great Lakes lighthouses that today exist—excepting e.g., Milwaukee Breakwater Light (1926), Poe Reef Light and Gravelly Shoal Light and some memorial lights, namely Manning Memorial Light,[14][15] Another is the William Livingtone Memorial Light and the latest Great Lakes light, namely Tri-Centennial Light of Detroit—had been constructed.[12]
Wrecks of the Cumberland and the Chisholm
The Rock of Ages reef consists of outcroppings of rocks, west of Isle Royale, that are an imminent hazard to navigation. Several wrecks occurred on the reef prior to the construction of the lighthouse.
The
On October 18, 1898, the
Rock of Ages Light
In 1908, construction began on the lighthouse. The construction crew established a base at Washington Harbor and used the lighthouse tender Amaranth to ferry men and materials to the site. A section of a rock was blasted to provide a flat area for the foundation. A steel cylindrical wall was erected and filled with concrete to give a pier that was 50 feet (15 m) in diameter and 25 feet (7.6 m) tall. The skeleton of the tower was built from steel. The inner and outer walls of the tower were constructed of brick. The concrete floors were supported on radial steel beams. The spiral stairs were cast iron. When the tower was enclosed, a bunkhouse, mess hall, and galley were built on a timber platform on the rock. The lighthouse was lit in 1908 with a temporary light.
In 1910, a second-order
A crew of lighthouse keepers was landed on the station each spring at the beginning of the shipping season, stayed the entire shipping season, and left in the fall. The remoteness and inaccessibility of the light made provisioning it especially burdensome and risky. At the end of one season, the crew's food was down to a single can of tomatoes when they were evacuated. Consequently, the lighthouse service took special precautions to make sure those dire straits would not recur.[19]
The structure of this light is unusual. The caisson which forms the first level is 25 feet high and contains a two-story cellar. From the bedrock up, a central steel core runs through the center of the structure and is its main support.[20] Although "unique, . . . it bears some resemblance to the 1893 Chicago Harbor Light."[21]
Part of the reason for the closing of the Rock Harbor Light station was the 1875 establishment of the Isle Royale Light on Menagerie Island. Shortly thereafter, a third light station was erected in the Isle Royale area -- Passage Island Light lit on July 1, 1882.[22]
The light was automated in 1978, which ended 68 years of service by light keepers. In 1985, the Fresnel lens was replaced when the light was powered by solar energy.
The original Fresnel Lens is on exhibit at the
The design is "similar to that of the offshore
Wreck of the George M. Cox
The
National Register of Historic Places
The Rock of Ages Light Station was named to the
The wrecks of the Cumberland, the Chisholm, and the George M. Cox were independently named to the National Register of Historic Places.
Viewing the light
The tower has an array of weather instruments, which is a
.The tower is closed. It may only be accessed by boat. However, it may be viewed from ferries to Isle Royale from Grand Portage, Minnesota,[29] or from Keweenaw Excursions boat tours.[21][22] Grand Portage Isle Royale Transportation Line has two boats that offer service to Isle Royale National Park. The Sea Hunter III travels daily between Grand Portage, Minnesota to Windigo, on the western end of Isle Royale. The Voyageur II makes overnight trips.[30] The Lighthouse is visible from either boat, which operate during the summer season.[31]
Restoration
The Rock of Ages Lighthouse Preservation Society began restoring the lighthouse in 2014.[32] Working as a partner of the National Park Service, the Society plans to open the light to the public upon completion of the project.[33]
References
- ^ "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Michigan". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. Archived from the original on 2017-05-01.
- ^ Pepper, Terry. "Database of Tower Heights". Seeing the Light. terrypepper.com. Archived from the original on 2000-09-18.
- ^ Pepper, Terry. "Database of Focal Heights". Seeing the Light. terrypepper.com. Archived from the original on 2008-08-30.
- ^ a b Light List, Volume VII, Great Lakes (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard.
- ^ Pepper, Terry. "Database of Original Lenses". Seeing the Light. terrypepper.com. Archived from the original on 2000-09-18.
- Boatnerd.com
- ^ a b Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Rock of Ages Light.
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ISBN 978-0-9747977-2-4. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
- ^ "Rock of Ages (Lake Superior) Light ARLHS USA-698". Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
- ^ "World List of Lights". Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f g Beacons in the Night, Clarke Historical Library. Central Michigan University.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8143-2554-4.
- boatnerd.com
- ISBN 0-9747977-0-7.
- ^ "SS Cumberland". Isle Royale National Park. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
- ^ a b c Wheeler, Wayne. "Rock of Ages Light Station" (PDF). The Keeper's Log. U.S. Lighthouse Society. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-07-20. Retrieved 2008-05-24.
- ^ Second Order Fresnel lens, Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light.
- Houghton Mifflin Co., 1933), pp. 157-158.
- Detroit News
- ^ a b c Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
- ^ Boatnerd.com.
- ^ a b Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy, Rock of Ages Lighthouse, Isle Royal (sic), Michigan. Lake Superior.
- ^ "Rock of Ages Light U.S. Coast Guard Lighthouses and Light Stations on the Great Lakes TR". National Park Service, Maritime Heritage Program, Inventory of Historic Lighthouses. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
- ^ Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Illinois". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
- ISBN 978-0-8143-3226-9. Retrieved 2009-12-25., 51 53.
- ISBN 978-0-9636412-9-8. Archived from the originalon 2010-06-20. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ Isle Royale Boats, including schedules and fees.
- ^ Grand Portage to Isle Royale -- The North Shore Connection to Isle Royale.
- ^ Anderson, Kraig, Lighthouse Friends, Rock of Ages Lighthouse.
- ^ "Work and Research – Rock of Ages Lighthouse Preservation Society". rockofageslps.org. Retrieved 2017-08-15.
- ^ Kaczke, Lisa (2017-03-27). "Lake Superior lighthouse will open to the public after restoration". Twin Cities. Forum News Service. Retrieved 2017-08-15.
Further reading
- Interview with Bill Muesel (Lighthousekeeper) concerning Rock of Ages Light, Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light.
- Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Rock of Ages Light.
- Wheeler, Wayne, Rock of Ages Light Station, A Keeper's Log, Fall, 2005.
- Wobser, David, "Rock of Ages Light" Great Laker magazine (December, 2004) Archived 2008-07-20 at the Boatnerd.com.
External links
Rock of Ages Light.